Do Mice Like Cheese?
Adulting is hard.
You have to realize and internalize that so many things you thought were true just aren’t. There is no Santa Clause or Easter Bunny. The delivery guy and handyman who fixes the thing inside the bedroom with the door closed isn’t Mommy’s “friend”. Money doesn’t grow on trees.
And mice? They don’t actually like cheese.
Well, that’s not completely true. They don’t mind it. But there are other things that they’d far rather munch on with their cute little faces.
Do mice eat cheese? Yeah sure. But if you’re wondering: “What is the best food to catch mice?”, you’d be better off with something else.
What Foods Do They Like Better Than Cheese?
When given a choice, mice prefer sweeter treats. Fruits or grains will do, but considering that radiates sweetness – like a candy bar – may be your best bet to catch mice.
Some say as well that mice are quite choosy, and not cheesy at all. Because of cheese’s pungent odour, it can actually repel mice. If they’re hungry, they’ll eat it to survive. However, you’re better off with grains, fruits, or some kind of packaged sweet treat.
Where Did The “Mouse / Cheese” Myth Come From?
My initial guess to this question was popular culture and old school cartoons like Tom and Jerry. However, obviously we’ll need to go further back than that, because where did the creators of Tom and Jerry get the idea?
One theory, which sounds good but doesn’t have much actual evidence, is that they mouse-cheese myth comes from thousands of years ago. People in the olden days (haha I just said “olden days”) stored grains in glass jars. Their meats were kept hanging up. Because of this, both of these foods were inaccessible to rodents.
Cheese, on the other hand, was kept on the shelf. This made it an easy target. So basically, mice ate cheese because of convenience, not preference.
Related: Mice may not be into cheese but we sure are. Here are the best grilled cheese sandwiches in Toronto.
